carbuilder1950

"WOW"!! How did I miss this post. That is "CRAZY WILD." Thank you @damodelguy az. Much appreciate you posting this!!!

@Claude ThibodeauI like the clean unassuming look, with a few things added, a few things removed, and the "just-right-stance," and great wheel and engine choice. Love 'um in the weeds!! Got one of these started in my stash, with an open hood and ready for paint. Love this hobby ?.

Thank you @slusher Appreciate it very much @ewetwo @Koellefornia KidLot's of fun building it Thanks @crazyjim Thank you @SickBoy. it's such a fun hobby and I enjoy being here ?.

@TooOld Your so right Bob. Some of us have a knack for eyeballing. Just seems to come naturally ?.

I love these old Jag sedans. They can have so many different personalities, depending on how they are dressed out. The black wheels give a bit of a sinister look to me. Pretty cool ?.

I love the old "Starfires," like your 2 shown here. Very different, but very very nice. Great job restoring them both.

I sure so like your '59 Buick. Nice choice of a beautiful color, and contrasting top and chrome foil makes it really "POP." Great job on a very nice restoration ?. Dave

@EngineerBob I have some flat sanding blocks of various sized , some short for small areas, and some longer ones for for getting long area's flat, to keep the body from being wavy. As I said, the rest is pretty much eyeballing. Everyone has their own style of building, and over time you just develop your own style. After a while it becomes pretty easy.

Thanks @EngineerBob (Grant). Some people just have an inate ability for this kind of thing. Kind of like a mechanic friend who can fix anything. Guys a genius. I'm by no means a genius, but sculpting model cars has always been pretty easy and pretty fun. It's sort of a natural artistic thing. I used to restore 1 to 1 cars, build street rods and customs many eons ago. Did a lot of body work, so some of this probably came with that. To answer your question, I use either multi-levels of tape stacked on top of each other as a pattern for shapes on compound curves, or I use Evergreen plastic as patterns for mostly flat shapes , especially those that need to be repeated on both sides. The rest is just eyeball work that seems to work pretty good with a set of digital calipers. I make everything with a sharp edge, clean and crisp, and then use several grades of sandpaper to round things off to get the right look. It just takes time and a pretty good eye, and it usually comes together pretty good. Never perfect, but it's usually good enough, like this Buick. I do a lot of measuring and pencil line drawing too. Anymore question, I'll be more than happy to answer.

The engine came from the 1949 Merc kit. Sort of a generic Chrysler or Chevy crossram engine with nice chrome and detail. I opened the hood and hinged it.

Well, I always wanted a 1950 Buick kit like this one, but nobody ever built one. So, the first thing I had to do was set out to build a 1950 Buick. As several others builds, I loved the Modelhaus grill/bumper assembly, so the car was pretty much built around that. I used an early diecast caddy rear bumper, and pieces of a 1958 Edsel taillights for the rear. No body makes one. I saw a resin body one time, but wasn't very well done, so I decided to build one sorta stock before it was customized. I stared out using a 1949 mercury and a 1951 Chevy fastback Fleetline to form the base of the body, and then used plenty of body filler. The pictures tell most of the story

As usual, Bernard, another great piece from that time period we love so much, And again, as usual, wonderful photos, that really tell the story. Thanks for sharing another great build. Dave

Hey there Bill Thank you. My folks never had a wagon, but I had several 3 seaters for my large family. My kids loved that third rear facing seat. They had fun waving at the folks following us. Great memories. Maybe that's why I love wagons so much. Have a great week. Thanks Rick! The style of these old 50's and 60's wagons are just the best. Glad we have these kits to enjoy now, and remember those good ol' days gone bye. Enjoy your day - Dave

@Zippi LOL ?

@AMT68 Boy oh boy is that beautiful ? Great colors both inside and out, and your foil work is gorgeous. I have this kit in my stash, and when I get to it, it will look just like yours. Very nice work !!!

@Zippy Congratulations! Sorry I didn't respond sooner. I missed your post somehow. You'll love the freedom of retirement. I sure do!!

Very, very nice. 1957 Studebaker - Cool cars ?.

Thanks so much everyone. I love building these old style cars from the 50's and 60's ?.

I've seen this body style in resin on Ebay and like them, but thought about building one like you have. I like the rear wheels moved back and the color you chose. It's a nice looking conversion, and very believable?

This is a diecast model kit I bought years back with the intention of building something like this. Only modifications were removing the front bumper, the paint, and foiling. Of course it had to sit on the ground. I love these with all their ugliness. So ugly their COOL !!!

I like this a lot. Mild custom, but just right. Nice colors inside and out, and I like the roof treatment with the scoop.

Hi Bob This is fun and informative watching your progress here. Glad your taking your time and making all the upgrades so nice and clean, and clear for us to understand ?. Dave

Thank you so much Dan ? Thank you Francis.? It was a beautiful resin kit to start with, so that made it very nice.

Thank you Jim.? Sorry I didn't get back to you sooner. I've got several outdoor projects going, and haven't been here much. Dave

I love all the comments about wagons from peoples past as children, and all the great memories they have to this day. It's amazing to me how the past is such a powerful part of our lives, and can elicit such strong emotions and feelings. Thanks for the nice comments guys. Much appreciated ?. Dave